Essay Comparing Frederick Douglass And Malcolm X

Would it be possible to say that literacy can liberate someone, just like it did with Douglass and Malcolm? Frederick Douglass and Malcolm X were two African American men whom struggled in becoming literate. Frederick Douglass from the “Narrative of the life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave”narrates how he struggled on learning how to read and write, being an slave and having such limited sources, Douglass tells the reader how his mistress, Mrs. Auld taught him the letters of the alphabet and she proceeded in teaching him how to spell some words after that he was on his own in learning the rest. In a similar position “The Autobiography of Malcolm X” illustrates his similar struggle, on learning how to literate, Malcolm was in condemned seven years in prison for robbery, Malcolm also explains of his frustration at his inability to write down the language he was able to speak. These two text demonstrates how being literate takes an important role in society and how these simple tools as the ability to read and write can facilitate one to achieve autonomy and at the same time …show more content…
So,would it be possible to say that literacy can liberate someone? Yes, Douglass and Malcolm seem to demonstrate that through literacy they were able to see the world in a whole different perspective than what they used to. Due to their skin color, neither of them was able to receive schooling, but still they achieve autonomy and protested against social norms and educated themselves. They both had their own ways of acquiring literacy in which impacted them differently, Douglass becoming a voice for the slaves and Malcolm x becoming a leader of civil rights movement. They both demonstrated that being literate can liberate one in so many